Device for forming a set of textile articles to be washed and/or dried

ABSTRACT

A device for forming a set of textile articles for to be washed and/or dried includes a forming element of the set of textile articles, reversible closing means interacting with the forming element according to a suitable mechanical connection. In order to maintain ordered and easily identifiable textile articles, the device may include a substantially elongated forming element that has two ends and may be arranged to pass through the textile articles, the forming element and the reversible closing means can be mutually arranged so that the ends of the forming element interact with the reversible closing means respectively according to suitable mechanical connections, so that the forming element is secured to or released from the set of textile articles.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the Invention

The invention relates to the field of devices for forming a set of textile articles, and more particularly, devices to hold a set of textile articles together, especially during their machine processing and/or drying.

Description of the Related Art

Each household does an average of five laundry cycles a week for domestic use. This consumption may vary according to the number of individuals within the household, their ages or their lifestyles. The movement of textile articles, their machine processing, their drying, and/or their sorting to distribute the textile articles, between the individual or individuals of a home or any type of community intended to accommodate one or several individuals, constitute multiple stages in any of which all types of textile articles may be misplaced. In fact, textile articles, and more particularly those of small size, tend to escape the vigilance of the person in charge of the processing of textile articles, also referred to hereinafter as the “user”, during the various stages of processing of the textile articles, including in machines. In addition, during a sorting stage following washing, it is often complicated and/or very time consuming to group together certain desired textile articles in sets, to hang the textile articles one by one on a drying rack for drying, to distribute them according to the individuals to which they belong, or to sort into pairs items which may be very similar.

The stages of pre and/or post-washing sorting are all the more time-consuming where the number of individuals is high, because the textile articles, due to their composition or their color, require different machine processing both during the washing stage and during the drying stage. Indeed, some textile articles may, due to their textile composition, require special processing during the various stages mentioned above. For example, the temperature used during washing is often a factor involved in the fading of a textile article of bright or dark color, which may also transfer its color to lighter textile articles. The use of an unsuitable temperature may further cause shrinkage of the textile article during the washing and/or drying stage, especially when using a dryer, of which the drying process can also cause deterioration of the fiber if the textile article is considered to be delicate, composed for example, in a non-limiting manner, of cashmere, silk or cotton. Similarly, for delicate textile articles, the spin speed also has an influence on certain textile fibers, often resulting in a shrinkage of the article when a spin speed is too high.

Thus, faced with the difficulties mentioned above, solutions have been developed to overcome some of the disadvantages outlined above. Among the existing solutions, we can cite a known example of a first device for forming a set of textile articles consisting of a laundry bag. Of very simple design, such a laundry bag generally includes a forming element in the form of a polyester net, forming a bag, and a reversible closure means, for example a zipper or a drawstring. Easy to use and generally capable of accommodating up to two kilos of textile articles, such a laundry bag makes it possible, in particular, to sort the textile articles according to different purposes sought by a user in charge of washing and/or drying. As mentioned above, families of textile articles can thus be formed so as to distinguish textile articles according to individual, color or the composition of the textile articles. However, such a first device in the form of a laundry bag has many disadvantages. Indeed, the mesh of the net used in such a laundry bag may be unsuitable for washing, or impair its effectiveness because the flow of water through the laundry bag during the wash cycle is not optimal and reduces the exchange surface between the textile articles and the cleaning agents present in the laundry detergent used during washing. This phenomenon is all the greater when the user of the laundry bag does not comply with the maximum capacity of the laundry bag, an overload inevitably causing an agglomeration of textile articles within the bag and consequently decreasing the effectiveness of a wash cycle.

In addition, such a first device in the form of a laundry bag does not allow the time spent by a user of the bag to be reduced satisfactorily during pre- and post-wash sorting phases. Indeed, textile articles, once arranged within the laundry bag, will most likely and inevitably mix during the wash phase. Such a first known device is therefore unsuited to a large number of situations likely to be encountered by a user, especially when it comes to forming a set of paired textile articles or maintaining various textile articles, which may be difficult to distinguish at first sight, in a given configuration within the device. Moreover, the first device is particularly unsuitable for the drying stage. In fact, the drying time increases considerably in the case of automatic drying in a tumble dryer-type machine. In fact, the textile articles placed within the laundry bag tend to form a cluster, increasing the drying time considerably. Such drying time is further increased in the case of manual drying, typically on a clothesline.

Unlike automatic drying which generates heat so that the water present in the textile articles evaporates, manual drying requires that the textile articles have a surface in contact with the largest possible amount of ambient air. Such a laundry bag is therefore unsuitable for such manual drying, the formation of clusters of textile articles resulting in a reduction of the exchange surface between the textile articles and the ambient air, thus creating moisture problems and potentially imparting a malodor to the textile articles.

A second example of a known device consists of an attachment pin for socks, stockings or gloves. The second known device also includes a forming element composed of two arms cooperating with each other via a hinge arranged to hold textile articles by clamping when the device is in a closed configuration. Such a device has, at the respective ends of the two arms, reversible closure means mutually arranged to interact in order to maintain the device in a closed configuration. In addition, such a second device includes attachment means which are present on one of the two arms and interact with a clothespin type fastening member so that the device interacts with a third support structure, of the clothesline or clothes rack type. The second example of a known device also has many ventilation openings made within the arms, in particular to facilitate the washing and/or drying of the textile articles. The second known device, in the form of an attachment pin, advantageously offers a time saving after the washing stage by dispensing with an additional sorting stage on the one hand, and by allowing its user to hang the textile articles present in the device in a single handling operation on the other hand. However, such a second example of a known device has many disadvantages. First, it is only suitable for small textile articles, such as, for example, socks, gloves or stockings.

In fact, the retention of the textile articles depends in particular on the fact that the surface of the textile article or articles, in contact with the articulated arms forming a clamp when in a closed configuration, must be sufficient for the textile article or articles not to separate from the device. In addition, a textile article having too great a thickness prevents the locking means from interacting to maintain the device in a closed configuration. As a result, the second known device can only contain a very small number of textile articles of limited thickness and/or size. Finally, the attachment means on one of the two arms are arranged so that a third holding member, typically a clothespin, can maintain the device on a clothes rack. Such attachment means therefore do not make it possible to dispense with the use of a third holding member.

Another third example of a device for maintaining textile articles in pairs is described in particular in connection with the utility certificate ES 1052658 U. The third known device includes a forming element advantageously adopting a “brooch” configuration to form two pins of flexible plastics material. Each pin includes a flexible plastics membrane having an opening, in which one or more textile articles, and more particularly small textile articles, such as, for example, underwear and more particularly socks, can be introduced and retained without being damaged. The third example of a known device in the form of a pin also has attachment means, such as a transverse notch, arranged to encase a third support structure of the clothesline type. The third device thus facilitates the sorting of certain textile articles, maintaining them as a unit throughout the washing and drying stages.

Nevertheless, the third known device is intended only to accommodate a certain category of textile articles, typically socks. It is also impossible to introduce more than one pair of socks into the device, making it quickly unsuitable for any user wishing to simultaneously wash a large number of textile articles, such as socks, but also for any user wishing to form a set of textile articles greater than two articles.

A fourth example of devices of the sock clamp type, similar to the third device mentioned in particular in connection with the utility certificate ES 1052658 U, also exists. A fourth example embodiment of a known device also takes the form of a flexible and elastic plastics disc in which two recesses are made, so that a textile article can be retained within the device by pinching the textile article. This fourth device is particularly suited to the retention of a sock and generally has, at one of its ends, an attachment means formed by a third recess and intended for facilitating the fixing of the device on a clothes rack for example. Such a fourth example of a device, while facilitating the manual drying stage, especially by means of hanging, has the same disadvantages as the third device described above. Indeed, the time saving resulting from easy sorting is counterbalanced by the fact that a user can introduce only one sock per device.

Thus, none of the existing solutions can solve all the previously mentioned disadvantages satisfactorily.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Applicants' invention makes it possible to address all or part of the disadvantages raised by the known solutions. The many advantages provided by a device for forming a set of textile articles according to the invention include that it makes it possible to:

-   -   offer a considerable time saving, by facilitating and decreasing         in particular the stages of pre-sorting and/or post-washing of         textile articles and allowing the user to categorize and/or         order them as desired;     -   keep the textile articles ordered and/or identified within a         device;     -   improve the hanging of textile articles during the drying stage,         drastically reducing the number of handling operations to be         performed by a user;     -   avoid any third attachment means, such as one or more         clothespins.

The user can, according to the invention, form a set consisting of a single textile article, so as to identify the article in question after the washing stage, which article may require, for example, a particular type of processing or which belongs to an individual that one would like to distinguish.

Alternatively, the user can, according to the invention, form one or more pairs of textile articles, such as, by way of non-limiting example, pairs of socks, and/or pairs of gloves, and or stockings. The user can thus arrange the pairs in question within the device according to the invention, so that once the washing and/or drying stage is complete, the textile articles remain matched and ordered.

Equally, the user can form a set including female underwear. Indeed, it may happen that the female underwear is misplaced between the sorting stage and the washing stage. One part of the underwear may, for example, remain in the dirty laundry basket, and the user may end up wearing mismatched underwear. More generally, the user can form one or more groups of textile articles, such groups including more than two textile articles.

In addition, the invention has the advantage of being usable by visually impaired people, thus improving their independence. These visually impaired people will be able to pair the used textile articles in order to wash/dry them in combination. Thus, during the next use of textile articles, the visually impaired person will not require the help of a third party to find matched textile articles. The invention cannot thus be limited to the number of textile articles constituting the set including at least one textile article.

To this end, a device for forming a set of textile articles to be washed and/or dried is provided in particular, including an element for forming the set of textile articles and a reversible closure means interacting with the forming element according to a suitable mechanical connection.

In particular to maintain and/or identify a set of one or more textile articles belonging for example to an individual, once sorted and/or ordered within a device according to the invention, the forming element of the latter is substantially elongated, has two ends and is arranged to pass through the textile articles.

According to the invention, the forming element and the reversible closing means are mutually arranged so that the ends of the forming element interact with the reversible closing means respectively according to suitable mechanical connections, so that the forming element is secured to or released from the set of textile articles.

The device according to the invention is characterized in that the reversible closure means include:

-   -   a body and a groove that is formed within the body and arranged         to receive one of the ends of the forming element,     -   locking means including a locking element movably mounted on the         member and arranged to surround the body and seal the groove so         that the device can have a closed configuration in which the end         of the forming element is accommodated within the groove and         remains held within the groove,     -   and in that the forming element mainly consists of a flexible         material for maintaining the device in the closed configuration,         and in that it has a substantially “U”-shaped profile which         includes at least one rigid and rectilinear section.

A device according to the invention allows for interaction between the ends of the forming element and the reversible closing means, which interaction is improved. Also, during the stages of washing and/or drying, a set of textile articles within such a device is maintained by means of the closing means and the locking means. The forming element is formed of at least one rigid section so that the rigid section makes it possible to guarantee an orderly separation of textile articles within a device according to the invention and to allow optimum drying of the textile articles.

In addition, in order to facilitate the interaction between the reversible closing means and one of the ends of the forming element, the forming element of a device may be made of a flexible material, making it possible to maintain the device according to the invention in a closed configuration, and may have a substantially U-shaped profile. In other words, the flexible material constituting the forming element has a degree of flexibility such that one end of a section of the forming element can separate from a second end of the forming element thus allowing the introduction of textile articles on the section.

Alternatively, or additionally, to facilitate the passage of the forming member through a set of textile articles, one end of the forming member may be tapered.

In particular to prevent the separation of the locking means from the reversible closing means, the body of the reversible closing means may also include means for limiting the stroke of the locking element.

Advantageously but not exclusively, in order to reduce the number of handling operations during the hanging of textile articles on any type of suitable support structure, a device according to the invention may include an attachment means arranged to interact with a third support structure.

Alternatively, or additionally, in order to improve the grip of a device according to the invention on the third support structure, such an attachment means can interact as a unit with the forming element, thus forming a single physical entity.

Preferably, but not exclusively, in order to avoid any deterioration of a device according to the invention or textile articles during washing and/or drying and to ensure the permanent usability of the device, the forming element and/or the reversible closing means may consist of one or more chemically inert and/or stainless materials, the forming member preferably being formed of stainless steel.

In order to allow the insertion of a device according to the invention in an apparatus for washing and/or drying a textile article, the device may have dimensions (L23, L24, L25, L, w, e, d) determined in order to allow it to be inserted into a drum of the apparatus for washing and/or drying textile articles.

Within the meaning of the invention and throughout the document, the term “textile article” means any element or article that can be woven or knitted and that can be divided into fibers or textile threads, that is, consisting of one or more materials, including, by way of non-limiting example: cotton, hemp, linen, wool (generally known as organic textiles) or asbestos (known under the general term of mineral textile), or even, following technical developments, synthetic fibers. By extension, the word “textile” can also apply to the resulting item after transformation. However, some current techniques implement processes of manufacturing by means of pressing or agglomerating textiles. The invention cannot be limited to textile articles made by conventional methods of weaving and/or knitting.

By way of non-limiting example, the term “textile article” may refer to household linen and/or clothes in general, such as underwear, gloves, socks, t-shirts, sweaters, shirts, etc.

Within the meaning of the invention and throughout the document, the term “set of textile articles” means the inclusion of one or more textile articles within the device.

Additional aspects of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The aspects of the invention will be realized and attained by means of the elements and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims. It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the invention, as claimed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention. The embodiments illustrated herein are presently preferred, it being understood, however, that the invention is not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown, wherein:

FIG. 1A shows a front view of a non-limiting embodiment of a device for forming a set of textile articles according to the invention in a closed configuration;

FIG. 1B shows a front view of a non-limiting embodiment of a device for forming a set of textile articles according to the invention in an open configuration;

FIG. 1C shows a side view of a non-limiting embodiment of a device for forming a set of textile articles according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

FIGS. 1A, 1B and 1C are schematic views of a non-limiting embodiment of a device for forming a set of textile articles according to the invention.

Such a device 1 for forming a set of textile articles to be washed and/or dried according to the invention thus includes an element 20 for forming the set of textile articles. The forming element 20 consists mainly of a substantially elongated body having two ends. The term “elongated member” means any object or part of an object having a thin and elongated portion and intended for passing through the textile articles.

The forming element 20 may advantageously pass through a mesh of a textile article and/or through an opening made in the textile article. One or more textile articles thus passed through can be maintained within the device 1 by the forming element 20, the ends of which interact with reversible closing means 10, so that the textile article or articles remain held by the device 1, in the order in which they were introduced.

According to one embodiment of a device according to the invention, described in connection with FIGS. 1A and 1B, the forming element 20 may consist of a rod having a cross section of any shape.

Preferably, the rod may have a circular cross section, to facilitate its passage through the mesh of textile articles, the rod including two ends 21, 22 for passing through the textile articles.

Such a forming element 20 may advantageously have a tapered profile in at least one of its ends 21, 22, to facilitate the passage of the end 21, 22 through a textile article and in particular to prevent damage to the textile article.

According to one embodiment of a device according to the invention, described in connection with FIGS. 1A and 1B, the forming element 20 may take the form of a needle and have a tapered end 22.

In addition, advantageously, by way of non-limiting example, the tapered end 22 of the forming element 20 may have a substantially rounded shape, in order to prevent a user of such a device from being injured with the tapered end while forming a set of textile articles.

According to another embodiment, by way of non-limiting example, the forming element 20 may include two tapered ends 21, 22 interacting reversibly with the reversible closing means 10, so that the insertion of textile articles is facilitated.

Preferably, but not exclusively, according to an embodiment of a device according to the invention described with reference to FIGS. 1A and 1B, the forming element 20 can also and advantageously be made of a flexible material and have a substantially U-shaped profile. The term “flexible material” is understood to mean any type of material of which the breaking point is such that the material is capable of undergoing elastic and/or plastic deformation without breaking, such as, by way of non-limiting example, metal alloys, preferably steel or iron.

Indeed, the substantially U-shaped profile of the forming element 20, in connection with FIGS. 1A and 1B, thus allows it to undergo sufficient elastic deformation when force is exerted by a user, so that the end 22 interacts with the reversible closing means 10. Such deformation of the forming element 20 facilitates the handling of the device 1 according to the invention, in particular to form a set of textile articles. The use of a flexible material for the design of the forming element 20 having a U-shaped profile makes it possible in particular to dispense with the use of a return spring to maintain the device in a closed configuration, the spring preventing any spread of material at both ends.

Indeed, the use of a device including such a return spring within a device according to the invention is not appropriate since it has a number of disadvantages. During their insertion into the device according to the invention and/or during the washing and/or drying stages, textile articles could for example be “pinched” by the return spring, thereby causing tearing of the textile articles.

The forming element 20 includes a rigid and rectilinear section 23, such that the section 23 has a sufficient stiffness not to deform after the formation of the set of textile articles within the device 1. The term “rectilinear section” means a section having the shape of a straight line. The term “rigid section” is understood to mean a section that may be made of a rigid material, that is to say having physicochemical properties such that, under action of a stress, the section suffers little or no deformation, thus maintaining its rectilinear profile. Indeed, the formation of the set of textile articles within the device can generate, by their weight, a stress on the section 23 which may cause its deformation when the device is hung.

This stress increases after the washing stage with the weight of textile articles whose fibers are still impregnated with water. Thus, the section 23 of the forming element 20 must have suitable mechanical properties and dimensions, enabling it to maintain its rectilinear profile, thus making it possible to maintain the ordered textile articles and ultimately to optimize the drying stage, where necessary by way of an additional support structure.

In order to hold a set of textile articles, and even secured within the forming element 20 and more generally within a device 1 according to the invention, the latter includes reversible closing means 10. Such reversible closing means 10 are advantageously adapted to the forming element 20, that is to say that the reversible closing means 10 are intended to interact with the end 21, 22 of the forming element 20 so that at least one of the ends 21, 22 of the forming element 20 can reversibly interact with the reversible closing means 10. The device 1 according to the invention can therefore be reused as desired after a washing and/or drying stage without causing the forming element 20 to break from the reversible closing means 10.

According to a particular embodiment of a device 1 according to the invention described in particular in connection with FIGS. 1A and 1B, the reversible closing means 10 may include a body 11 within which a groove 12 may be made. Such a groove may consist of a trough, advantageously arranged to accommodate one of the ends 21, 22 of the forming element 20, so that the latter may be secured to and/or released from the set of textile articles. The body 11 of the reversible closing means 10 may thus take on any suitable geometric shape, such a shape possibly being arranged according to the configuration, the material and/or the profile of the forming element 20.

Again, according to the embodiment described in connection with FIGS. 1A to 1C, the forming element 20 advantageously has a U-shaped profile, and the body 11 may advantageously be of a substantially cubic shape or equivalent to a block.

The invention cannot, however, be limited to these configuration examples alone; the body 11 may alternatively have a substantially cylindrical or spherical shape.

The invention cannot, however, be limited to these exemplary embodiments and allows in particular that the reversible closing means 10 may include two bodies, in which two grooves or through holes are respectively made, the grooves or through holes being arranged to accommodate one of the ends 21, 22 of the forming element 20, so that the latter is secured to or released from the set of textile articles.

As already mentioned, to ensure reversible interaction between the forming element 20 and the reversible closing means 10, a groove 12 can be made within the body 11, the groove being arranged to accommodate one of the ends 21, 22 of the forming element 20. For this purpose, the groove 12 may have dimensions adapted to the dimensions of the end 21, 22 of the forming element 20 accommodated within the groove 12. The invention cannot, however, be limited to the number of grooves made in the body 11.

Alternatively, the invention provides that the body 11 may include a second groove, also arranged to accommodate the second end 21, 22 of the forming element 20. According to this embodiment, the ends 21, 22 of the forming element 20 interact with the body 11 in a reversible manner, so that the reversible closing means 10 can separate from the forming element 20 in an open configuration and thus form two distinct physical entities.

The interaction between the reversible closing means 10 and the forming element 20 may be produced using any connection capable of ensuring the association of the reversible closing facilities 10 and the forming element 20. Preferably, but not exclusively, in order to facilitate the use of a device 1 according to the invention, avoiding the loss of one or more component elements, the invention provides that the reversible closing means 10 and the forming element 20 interact as a unit, permanently, according to a suitable mechanical connection.

To do this, according to a particular embodiment of a device 1 according to the invention, described in particular with reference to FIGS. 1A and 1B, a single groove 12 is formed within the body 11 of the reversible closing means 10, the end 22 of the forming element 20 being advantageously reversibly accommodated within the groove 12. The invention then provides that the end 21 of the forming element 20 interacts permanently with the body 11. To do this, a recess is advantageously made in all or part of the body 11, so that the end 21 is inserted into the body 11 and is permanently retained.

According to another variant embodiment, not shown in the figures for purposes of simplification, the groove 12 of the body 11 can be arranged to open onto a recess traversing all or part of the body 11, so that one of the ends 21, 22 of the forming element 20 can remain held by the body 11 once received by the body 11.

In addition, in order to allow a user of a device according to the invention to identify that a set of textile articles belongs to a particular category or to a member of a household or a community especially for the young and old, the body 11, or more generally the reversible closing means 10, may advantageously be customizable. Such customization of the reversible closing means 10 or more generally the device 1 according to the invention may advantageously consist of one or more inscriptions, colors, reliefs or any other type of information perceptible by one of the human senses, which allow a user of a device according to the invention to rapidly distinguish a set of textile articles held by a device 1 according to the invention as corresponding to a given category and/or a member of a household. Such a category may for example consist of a set of textile articles including articles composed of similar fabrics, for example more or less delicate articles, which should be segregated before the washing and/or drying stage. The purpose of segregation is, for example, to separate textile articles requiring conventional manual drying, in particular textile articles not intended for automatic drying, from textile articles intended for machine drying.

The invention cannot, however, be limited to the means used to customize a device according to the invention, it thus being possible to adapt and/or arrange such customization means according to the configuration and/or the structure of the means bearing such marking which is perceptible by the human.

The invention cannot, however, be limited to exemplary embodiments, more particularly the arrangement or the structure, of the reversible closing means mentioned above.

The invention thus provides that any closing means for ensuring a reversible interaction with the forming element, so that the latter may be secured to or released from the set of textile articles, may be used instead.

Advantageously, the reversible closing means 10 of a device according to the invention may further include locking means. The locking means make it possible in particular to keep the device 1 in a closed configuration. Indeed, during the washing and/or drying stages in the absence of such locking means, the forming element 20 could separate from the reversible closing means 10, thus freeing the textile articles within the drum and reversing the sorting work done previously by a user of the device 1.

To do this, such locking means may include a locking element 13 that is movably mounted, that is to say in translation and/or rotation, on the body 11, and arranged to surround the body 11 and seal the groove 12 in the closed configuration, so that the end 22 of the forming element 20 remains held by the body 11.

The body 11 and the locking element 13 are mutually arranged to interact according to a mechanical connection adapted to perform a translational and/or rotational movement.

In a particular embodiment of a device according to the invention described with reference to FIGS. 1A and 1B, the locking element 13 consists of a sliding ring movably mounted in translation and interacting with the body 11 according to a slide type connection.

Advantageously but not exclusively, the locking element 13 may include a longitudinal protuberance arranged to interact with a corresponding notch that is made in the body 11 and intended to seal or not seal the groove 12 made within the body 11 and thus prevent the separation of the set of textile articles.

According to another embodiment, the locking element 13, possibly in the form of a ring, may advantageously be threaded and arranged to interact with a corresponding thread formed on the body 11 according to a helical type connection, so as to seal the groove 12 and maintain the end 22 of the forming element 20 within the groove 12.

In addition, the reversible closing means 10 may further include means to limit the stroke 14 of the locking element 13. Indeed, the possible translational and/or rotational movement(s) of the locking element 13 relative to the body 11 may, if they are not held on the surface of the body 11, result in the separation of the locking element 13 from the body 11 and cause inadvertent opening of the device and consequent separation of the set of textile articles from the forming element 20.

In a particular non-limiting embodiment of a device 1 according to the invention described in connection with FIGS. 1A and 1B, the limiting means 14 may consist of one or more stops arranged at the ends of the body 11, so that the locking element 13 remains secured and limited in its mobility on the surface of the body 11. The movably mounted locking element 13 may advantageously have smaller dimensions than the body 11, so that in an open configuration, the end 22 of the forming element 20 can be released from the body 11, and that the limiting means 14 block the stroke of the locking element 13.

Alternatively or additionally, a device 1 for forming a set of textile articles according to the invention may also include attachment means 30, arranged in particular to interact with any type of suitable third support structure. Indeed, once a washing stage is complete, the set of textile articles present within a device 1 according to the invention generally undergoes a drying stage, whether it is performed automatically and requires the use of a suitable drying apparatus, or, alternatively, carried out manually by hanging. One of the aims of the invention is, as previously stated, to avoid the number of handling operations of the set of textile articles as far as possible, and more particularly the separation of the set, especially during the drying stage. Throughout the document and within the meaning of the invention, a “third support structure” may consist of any type of support structure on which the device according to the invention may be fixed or suspended in order to perform a manual drying stage, such as, as non-limiting examples, a drying rack and/or a clothesline.

Preferably, but not exclusively, the attachment means 30 may be arranged to enclose all or part of a wire-shaped fixed support structure, such as, already mentioned by way of non-exhaustive example, a clothesline or a clotheshorse. In a particular embodiment of a device 1 according to the invention described in particular in connection with FIGS. 1A and 1B, the attachment means 30 may interact as a unit with the forming element 20.

To do this, the attachment means 30 are arranged to be fastened on the forming element 20, possibly movably mounted in translation on the element.

Preferably, the arrangement of the attachment means 30 on the forming element 20 will be such that the weight of the device 1 can be uniformly distributed when the device interacts with a third support structure. By way of non-limiting examples, according to FIGS. 1A and 1B, when the forming element 20 has a U-shaped profile, that is to say it includes two sections consisting of arms 23, 24, the invention provides that the attachment means 30 can interact with, and more particularly enclose, one of the two arms.

In addition, in order to reduce the production costs of a device 1 according to the invention, the attachment means 30 can permanently interact with the forming element 20, preferably but not exclusively, so as to form only one physical entity.

The invention cannot however be limited to this single example of structure and arrangement of the attachment means 30. Alternatively, the invention provides that such attachment means 30 can interact with the reversible closing means 10.

Alternatively, the invention provides that the attachment means 30 can reversibly interact with the forming element 20 or more generally with the device 1. Such a configuration is particularly advantageous, since it allows a user to surround and/or fix the attachment means 30 on any section of the forming element 20. Furthermore, the user may also decide not to use the attachment means 30, especially in the case where the use of a drying apparatus is suitable and/or necessary. In the case where the user opts for a manual drying mode, using a third support structure, he may directly fix the attachment means 30 to the forming element 20 prior to the drying stage when the latter is performed manually, thus preserving the attachment means 30 from possible deterioration during the washing stage. Indeed, during the washing cycles, the repeated impact of a device 1 according to the invention, with the drum of a washing apparatus for example, can cause deterioration of the various elements making up the device 1. In addition, the risks of the different elements of such a device deteriorating are greater in the case of the use of a drying apparatus, this drying mode also causing repeated impact between the drum of the drying apparatus and the device 1.

Moreover, the reversible interaction of the attachment means 30 with the forming element 20 makes it possible to balance the device 1 including a set of textile articles once in interaction with the third support structure. Indeed, textile articles of different weights can cause a non-uniform distribution of the total weight of the device 1.

According to one embodiment, the attachment means 30 are formed by a hook and any type of bent attachment for suspending the device 1 to a clothesline or clothes rack.

As previously seen, in a particular embodiment of a device 1 for forming a set of textile articles according to the invention, a section 23, 24 of the forming element 20 can advantageously be rigid and have a rectilinear profile, allowing the section to not be subjected to a substantial deformation, especially under the stress of the weight of a set of textile articles when they are wet. A poor distribution of the weight of the set within the device 1 may possibly lead to destabilization of the latter, once in interaction with the third support structure.

Indeed, according to a particular embodiment of a device 1 according to the invention described in connection with FIG. 1A, the section 23 is substantially parallel to the third support structure, not shown in the figures for simplification purposes, when the device 1 is fixed on the third support structure via the attachment means 30. Destabilization of the device 1 would therefore affect this parallelism, thereby inducing the formation of a cluster of textile articles within the device 1, thereby increasing the drying time of the textile articles. By the use of such attachment means 30, the user can advantageously optimize the drying time and also the sorting time. Indeed, the attachment means 30 may be fixed such that the device remains stable, that is to say, in the case of the embodiment described in connection with FIG. 1A, substantially parallel to the device 1, once in interaction with the third support structure.

Alternatively or in addition, a device 1 for forming a set of textile articles according to the invention may preferably consist of one or more chemically inert and/or stainless materials. Indeed, the device 1 is intended to be accommodated by any type of washing and/or drying apparatus. The temperatures employed during washing and/or drying stages for conventional household appliances generally range from 30° C. to 90° C. Similarly, a large number of laundry detergents of which the composition differs, in particular with respect to detergents and other active ingredients, is available on the market. In order to avoid possible deterioration of a device 1 according to the invention, a set of textile articles and/or possibly the washing and/or drying apparatus, it is preferable that no chemical reaction take place between the device 1 and the solvent used.

Many materials with the desired properties can be used. In a particular embodiment of a device 1 according to the invention, the forming element 20 of the latter may be mainly composed of stainless steel. The reversible closing and/or locking means 10 may be composed of plastics material such as, by way of non-limiting example, a compound of the family of thermoplastics, more particularly polyvinyl chloride, also known under the abbreviation PVC.

The invention cannot however be limited to these examples of materials only. Alternatively or in addition, alternative materials may be chosen and/or used instead, particularly depending on the constraints regarding the final use of a device 1 according to the invention, and manufacturing costs for producing such a device 1.

Moreover, alternatively or in addition, to allow the insertion of a device 1 according to the invention within the drum of an apparatus for washing and/or drying textile articles, the device may have predetermined dimensions.

To illustrate such dimensions, the device according to the invention will be described by means of a non-limiting example, in connection with FIGS. 1A and 1B. In such an embodiment, a device 1 according to the invention includes a forming element 20 in the form of a rod, advantageously made of stainless steel and having a U-shaped profile, and reversible closing means 10 including a body 11 of substantially cubic shape, within which a groove 12 is made, the body 11 interacting as a unit with one of the ends 21, 22 of the rod by means of an embedded connection. The reversible closing means 10 of the device 1 also include locking means in the form of a sliding ring serving as a locking element 13, the body 11 including limiting means 14 distributed at the ends of the body 11 and arranged to limit the stroke of the sliding ring 13.

According to an advantageous but non-limiting embodiment of a device according to the invention described in particular in connection with FIGS. 1A and 1B, the forming element 20, in the form of a rod, includes a first section 23 of which the length L23 is between ten and twenty centimeters, preferably fourteen centimeters, a second section 24 whose length L24 is between ten and twenty centimeters, preferably fourteen centimeters, a third section 25, providing the junction between the first and second sections 23, 24, of which third section the length L25 is between two and five centimeters, preferably three centimeters, a first end 21 following on from the second section 24 and ensuring permanent interaction with the body 11 and a second end 22 following on from the first section 23 and being arranged to be inserted into the groove 12 made in the body 11.

As mentioned above, the body 11, having a substantially cubic shape, interacts with the end 21 of the forming element 20 by means of an embedded connection, the connection being shown in FIG. 1B by dashed lines. The groove 12 made in the body 11 can traverse all or part of the body 11 so that the body 11 is substantially hollow. Such a groove 12 is advantageously arranged to receive the end 22, the end 22 remaining held by the body 11 in a closed configuration, as illustrated in FIG. 1A.

Preferably, but not exclusively, the length L25 of the section 25 of the rod and the width w of the body 11 may be substantially the same. Also, according to the embodiment described with reference to FIGS. 1A to 1C, the body 11, having a substantially cubic geometric shape or a shape equivalent to a block, has the following dimensions: a length L and a width w between two and five centimeters, preferably three centimeters, and a thickness e between one and three centimeters, preferably one centimeter and a half. Finally, as already mentioned, the forming element 20, depending on the type of set of textile articles that it forms, can be passed through the mesh of the textile articles.

One of the aims of the invention therefore consists in preventing any damage to the textile articles. To do this, the section of the rod, being substantially cylindrical and constituting the forming element 20 in the embodiment of a device according to the invention described with reference to FIGS. 1A and 1B, may have a diameter d greater than one half of a millimeter, preferably equal to one millimeter and a half, such a diameter being optimal, on the one hand to avoid deterioration of the device and/or textile articles during the washing and/or drying phases, and on the other hand to allow the tapered end 22 to pass through any type of textile article, so that when removing the textile article, the latter is not damaged.

Of note, the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “includes”, and/or “including,” when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.

As well, the corresponding structures, materials, acts, and equivalents of all means or step plus function elements in the claims below are intended to include any structure, material, or act for performing the function in combination with other claimed elements as specifically claimed. The description of the present invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the invention in the form disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention. The embodiment was chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the invention and the practical application, and to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the invention for various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.

Having thus described the invention of the present application in detail and by reference to embodiments thereof, it will be apparent that modifications and variations are possible without departing from the scope of the invention defined in the appended claims as follows: 

1. A device for forming a set of textile articles to be washed and/or dried, comprising: a forming element of said set of textile articles, said forming element being substantially elongated, having two ends and being arranged to pass through said textile articles, reversible closing means which interact with said forming element according to a suitable mechanical connection, the forming element and the reversible closing means being mutually arranged so that the ends of said forming element interact with said reversible closing means respectively according to suitable mechanical connections, so that the forming element may be secured to or released from said set of textile articles, wherein said reversible closing means comprise: a body and a groove that is formed within said body and arranged to receive one of the ends of the forming element, the locking means comprising a locking element movably mounted on said body and arranged to surround said body and seal said groove so that the device may have a closed configuration in which the end of the forming element is accommodated within the groove and remains held within said groove, and in that said forming element mainly consists of a flexible material for maintaining said device in the closed configuration, and in that it has a substantially “U”-shaped profile which comprises at least one rigid and rectilinear section.
 2. The device according to claim 1, wherein one of the ends of the forming element is tapered.
 3. The device according to claim 1, wherein said body further comprises limiting means of the locking element.
 4. The device according to claim 1, further comprising attachment means arranged to interact with a third support structure.
 5. The device according to claim 4, further comprising an attachment means which interact as a unit with the forming element, forming a single physical entity.
 6. The device according to claim 1, wherein the forming element and/or the reversible closing means consist of one or more chemically inert and/or stainless materials.
 7. The device according to claim 1, wherein the forming element is formed of stainless steel.
 8. The device according to claim 1, wherein the device has dimensions enabling the device to be inserted into a drum of an apparatus for the washing and/or drying of textile articles. 